Posts Tagged ‘ford crown vic cop cars’

Any resemblance to the legendary SR-71 Blackbird spy plane is purely intentional, says Ford designer Melvin Betancourt, of the new Ford Police Interceptor Stealth Concept, which will make its debut at the SEMA show, later this week.

The police car business was thrown up in the air by Ford’s long-overdue decision to finally pull the plug on its aging Crown Victoria, the rear-drive sedan of choice for most law enforcement duties. All three of the Detroit makers have been struggling to fill the cop car vacuum, along with industry newcomer Carbon Motors, which is developing a ground up police car to be powered by a BMW diesel engine.

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Ford, in particular, has shown off two optional alternatives to the old Crown Vic cruiser, including both a converted Taurus and a specially-updated version of the all-new 2011 Explorer SUV. But the Ford Police Interceptor Stealth Concept is designed for more limited, if more demanding duties.

This Taurus-based model is designed to lie in wait, concealed by its black paint, tinted windows, darkened mesh grille, black trim and even blacked-out tailpipes, ready to swoop down on miscreants. (Which is likely to give nervous shivers to most of the folks touring the 2010 SEMA show, an annual Las Vegas event that has traditionally specialized in performance parts and components.)